About “Fireworks”

Drake opens his debut LP Thank Me Later with a “monologue” that answers some of the common questions that he ignores in interviews. The song was produced by Drake’s frequent collaborator Noah “40” Shebib and features Alicia Keys singing the hook. Drake told MTV News why this track opens the album. “The song itself is the first song on the album; I think it’s the biggest indicator of what the album is gonna be like,” he said. “That’s why I picked that song to go first, and that’s why I wrote the first verse like that. It’s really where I am in my life right now. I know they’re looking forward to the album, so I want them to get a feel of how the story starts off.”

What has Drake said about this song?

I took the time on that song and every single verse to be really honest about questions that I never, ever answer. I guess the sort of fear that me and Wayne will be driven apart by the fact that I actively did gain success as an artist, and I always worry that sometimes that might drive a wedge between us, which I pray it never will and which I say in the song.

In the second verse, I address the relationship that I’m often questioned about and I duck and dodge questions about it.

In the third one, I talk about my parents. So really, it’s just one of those songs where to listen to it in a room full of people makes me feel awkward, and that’s a good thing to me. I’m really proud of that song.